Rights groups seek inclusion of right to water in constitution
On the ongoing 2nd National Urban Water Sector Reform Project in Nigeria, which is being financed by a $200mWorld Bank loan, Mr. Babalobi called for its review to "make it inclusive, people centred, transparent, participatory, and achieve the goal of delivering water to Nigerians at an affordable price."
"Water must remain a public trust rather than that a commodity to be traded by the private sector, to guarantee its access and affordability to the poor who used it most”, said Mr. Babalobi.
The World Bank has a policy of forcing loans with onerous conditions on poorercountries, then demanding as terms of the loan that they they privatize the water. This helps the people not a whit, but certainly helps multinational corporations quite a lot.
We’re not talking bubble gum here, we’re talking water. It’s an indispensable part of life, and shouldn’t be for sale to the highest bidder.